It will be appreciated that there currently exists numerous variations on the design of a drumstick as well as various methods of playing drumsticks. Some design variations for drumsticks are directed to the playing tip of the stick, to change the sound produced by the drumstick when it strikes the surface of a drum, while other design variations are intended to provide a more secure grip and better control of the drumstick or to make the drumstick more comfortable to use.
Examples of drumsticks which have been modified to provide improved gripping can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,488,470; U.S. Pat. No. 1,484,777; U.S. Pat. No. 3,608,419; U.S. Pat. No. 4,476,768; U.S. Pat. No. 4,719,836; U.S. Pat. No. 5,370,030; and U.S. Pat. No. D295,782. These patents offer improved gripping methods by altering the handle portion of a drumstick in various manners. The invention of U.S. Pat. No. 4,488,470 shows a drumstick having square cut grooves along the handle for gripping purposes. U.S. Pat. No. 1,484,777 teaches a drumstick with string or cord wrapped around the handle and U.S. Pat. No. 3,608,419 teaches a drumstick with a handle grip of nylon fibers. None of these patents suggest a new way of playing a drumstick.
What is needed, then, is a musical instrument which can be played as a conventional drumstick and can also be played in a new manner to produce a unique sound. Such an instrument is presently lacking in the prior art.